Putin demands that Washington provide evidence of Russia's interference in US elections
The US authorities must provide Russia with information that justifies its accusations against thirteen Russian nationals led by oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin that they unsuccessfully attempted to influence the results of the presidential elections in the United States, stated Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview with NBC.
"I first have to look at what they did. Give us the materials. Give us information. With all due respect to you personally, with all due respect to the Congress, you should have people with diplomas in jurisprudence, 100%," said the Russian president.
Putin said that it is impossible to prosecute "anyone who did not violate the laws of Russia" in Russia. "An official request to the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation [would be] required" to begin to deal with this issue in the country.
"This should go through official channels, and not through the press, or [through] screaming and yelling in the US Congress," Putin said.
US Attorney General Robert Mueller is in charge of the investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 US elections. In February, Mueller published a criminal indictment against persons accused of committing the interference.
The document includes approximately 40 pages and individually named thirteen Russian nationals.